Centre of excellence

Your trusted partner in strategy design

Awardco’s Centre of Excellence brings together industry-leading experts, strategic advisors, and hands-on practitioners to elevate recognition programs and drive client success at scale.

meet our team

Leaders in strategy,
partners in success

With decades of global experience, the COE delivers tailored support in program design, strategy, and execution, building and optimizing proven solutions that drive real results.

Cali Hyde
Head of Strategic Accounts
Cali Hyde

With over nine years of experience in SaaS and professional services, Cali Hyde brings strategic depth and business acumen to the Centre of Excellence. Currently Awardco’s Head of Strategic Sales, Cali has led enterprise sales, proposal strategy, and global development across markets in both the U.S. and Europe. Her cross-functional leadership and passion for scalable, strategic solutions make her an essential voice in aligning COE initiatives with client needs and business growth.

 
Chantale Callingham
VP of Client Success
Chantale Callingham

Chantale Callingham is Vice President of Client Success and leads Awardco’s Centre of Excellence, bringing 15+ years of experience in SaaS and enterprise strategy. A certified PMP and MBA, she’s known for people-first leadership, building inclusive global teams, and driving measurable impact. Chantale’s career includes roles at Fortune 500s and leading tech firms, always focused on transforming customer experiences. Passionate about equity, belonging, and innovation, she challenges the status quo and fosters strategic partnerships to scale meaningful workplace recognition and culture.

 
Christi Gilhoi
Corp. Integration - Emp. Experience
Christi Gilhoi

Christi is an Employee Experience executive with leadership roles at Qualcomm, Okta, and Cisco, bringing deep expertise in building and scaling global recognition programs for organizations of 40,000+ employees. With hands-on experience across the full program lifecycle—from business case development and securing executive buy-in to change management and successful launches—she understands the client perspective inside and out. Now consulting with Team Awardco, Christi serves as a practitioner resource, helping clients drive meaningful employee engagement and operational excellence through strategic recognition initiatives.

 
Katie Bundy
Rewards & Recognition Leader
Katie Bundy

Katie Bundy brings deep strategic expertise to the Centre of Excellence after 17 years at J.P. Morgan, where she led initiatives across Sales, Finance, and Employee Experience. She co-led the rollout of Awardco’s platform to 290,000+ global employees, boosting recognition satisfaction by 17%. Katie’s strength lies in aligning program strategy with business needs through thoughtful design, change management, and executive engagement—making her a key player in shaping scalable, effective client programs.

 
Laura Shanley
Employee Experience Advisor
Laura Shanley

A trusted expert in program implementation and optimization, Laura Shanley has led Awardco initiatives from the client side and now consults for multiple organizations navigating complex launches. With hands-on experience from Okta, DocuSign, and Qualcomm, Laura brings unmatched insight into the nuances of R&R vendors and platform design. Her ability to build scalable, efficient programmes on tight timelines makes her an essential partner in delivering client success through the COE.

 
Nick Frazier
Senior Director of CS & Ops
Nick Frazier

Nick Frazier serves as Senior Director of Client Success and Operations for Awardco EMEA, bringing years of operational expertise and global leadership to the Center of Excellence. With a background in human resource management, data analytics, and a tenure of over seven years at Awardco, Nick has played a pivotal role in scaling service operations across regions. His strategic oversight and cross-functional insight into client success operations help the COE deliver scalable, sustainable processes that meet the evolving needs of a global customer base.

 
Sarah Marrs
Centre of Excellence Global Lead
Sarah Marrs

Sarah is a global lead on Awardco’s Centre of Excellence, advising organizations on reward and recognition strategy while researching its impact on employee behavior. An organizational psychologist with 15+ years’ experience, she is completing a doctorate in Evidence-Based HR at Birkbeck University, London. Sarah spent nine years at Qualtrics, guiding EX solution design for major global clients, and earlier held employee-insight roles at Tesco, Hay Group, and Kenexa. A member of the British Psychological Society, she also holds a master’s in Work and Organizational Behavior from Dublin City University.

 
ShaNae McCleskey
Director, Technical Account Services
ShaNae McCleskey

ShaNae is Director of Technical Account Services at Awardco, where she builds and leads high-performing technical teams that support the company’s largest global clients. A Six Sigma–certified leader with a BS from UVU, she is also a key contributor to Awardco’s Centre of Excellence, driving process optimization, innovation, and strategic insights. ShaNae specializes in crafting sustainable technology solutions that elevate employee satisfaction while championing people-first initiatives. Committed to psychological safety, she cultivates workplaces where employees can challenge ideas openly, bring their authentic selves to work, and fuel a culture of continuous innovation.

 

Centre of Excellence services

Providing tailored guidance on rewards budgeting, program deployment, implementation, and much more to ensure impactful employee experiences.

Strategic expertise rooted in real-world success
Backed by real-world experience leading global recognition programs, our team pairs deep product expertise with benchmark-driven insights to deliver strategic guidance that drives measurable results.
You receive:
  • Strategic guidance backed by experience leading global recognition programs
  • Deep product knowledge paired with benchmark-driven insights
  • Focused solutions that deliver measurable business impact
Tailored program advisory and business consultation
Every organization is at a different stage in its recognition journey, which is why we offer tailored consultation, including ROI strategies, business case development, governance and budget modeling, communication planning, and global stakeholder alignment.
You receive:
  • Support for every stage of the recognition journey
  • Custom strategies aligned to business goals and scale
  • Guidance across ROI, governance, communication, and adoption
Research-backed strategy
Recognition transforms organizations. Through research, community, and client collaboration, we help build programs that inspire, connect, and grow with the business.
You receive:
  • Insights driven by industry research and client collaboration
  • Program design rooted in connection, growth, and evolution
  • Access to a community of practitioners and proven best practices
 
 
Awardco is central to our strategy around helping people feel connected across the organization in the work that they do. Our strength is that we have diversity across all our offices. So collaboration may be the soul of a layer group, that tie that binds our unique cultures together. But we really want to celebrate and recognize the diversity across our offices, and that is our strength. Awardco helps us create that visible platform for everybody to see the good work and the unique ways that people are solving problems around the organization.
Kristie White
Organizational Development
Hertz
 
 
We think a lot about our frontline employees. They're the ones that make us who we are and drive our business, and we wanted to make sure they knew we appreciated them. Awardco does that.
Annasuela Fritz
HR Projects and Recognition Manager
PMG
 
 
Awardco made it easy for every employee, whether in Dallas or the UK, to feel seen, valued, and celebrated.
Pam Buyers
Head of Culture
TaylorMade
 
 
When you have employees working hard from home juggling family responsibilities, and yet still being physically separate from their team, a simple birthday message and gift they get to pick out creates a meaningful touchpoint, and allows them to take a moment for themselves.
Rosie Scannell
Global HR
The Nest Schools
 
 
The best decision we made was switching from our previous platform to Awardco. The customer service is excellent, the features are amazing, and we LOVE that they take our ideas and make them happen. They are always looking at innovating, which is one of our core values. We are extremely satisfied with Awardco and everyone here at The Nest LOVES the program.
Sara Beer
Director of Core Values
Velsera
 
 
What I love most is the reporting aspect. It's something that reinforces the impact of Awardco, and it shows that the work we're doing is paying off.
Marko Zecevic
Employee Experience Manager
Hunt Brothers Pizza
 
 
We've given our employees something they never had before: the power to choose their own rewards. And if that wasn't enough, we save money because the products aren't marked up! Awardco truly brought our recognition programs into the 21st century.
Jeff Jensen
Director of HR
PMG
 
 
Companies that invest in recognition are seen as people-centric. When people feel appreciated for their contributions and are truly engaged, they’re more innovative, more creative, and more willing to think beyond the status quo. This elevates work, fuels stronger business outcomes and can foster deeper customer relationships.
Monica Gunderson
Talent Management Lead
Paramount
 
 
I was really looking for a user-friendly, up-to-speed, and easy-to-use program that can expand in different ways, and I found it with Awardco.
Shaye McCoy
Manager, Global Total Rewards Experience
Children's Nebraska
 
 
[Awardco] was something that was easy to use. I knew that healthcare provider's first priority is their patient, so how do we make it so easy that they can participate and still make sure that they're still taking care of the patient.
Madeline Quinn
Employee Experience Manager
Aptive Environmental
 
 
With Awardco we now have more visibility into our incentive budgets than ever, and can be more judicious about our incentive spend.
Lacy Andersen
Project Manager
BPM
 
 
We really like the redemption options and how Awardco integrates with Amazon — the platform's ease-of-use has empowered us to handle our growing employee population.
Monica Delgado
Senior Manager of Total Rewards
The Nest Schools
 
 
Just managing our custom rewards felt like a full-time job with our previous vendor—it took all day every Friday. With Awardco, I don't have to do any of the manual fulfillment work anymore. I'm saving 6-8 hours a week, just managing orders.
Sara Beer
Director of Core Values
Quick Quack Car Wash
 
 
Awardco has made employees' lives easier. Working outside in the elements with the customers can be tough, but being recognized, seen, heard, and valued makes it easier.
Christina Castro
Training Leader
PMG
 
 
When employees feel seen and appreciated, they’re more engaged and engagement drives performance. Using Awardco helps leaders and managers recognize impact in real time and that momentum drives continued and lasting success.
Monica Gunderson
Talent Management Lead

Personalized advice from experts in the field

Awardco’s Centre of Excellence is designed to provide you with the guidance you need from experts you trust.